Bounty on Cebu City Police Office chief

P20-MILLION. Cebu City Police Chief Royina Garma, in an interview with reporters, says those in the drug trade are out to get her because of her no-nonsense campaign against illegal drugs. (SunStar file)

CEBU City Police Office (CCPO) Director Royina Garma said she is taking precautions after she received a report that someone put a P20-million bounty on her head.

“Hindi ko alam (I don’t know). I was told lang na mag-ingat (to be careful) because of that,” she said.

According to Garma, big-time drug lords in the National Bilibid Prison put up the bounty a week after she assumed office because her anti-drugs operations will affect the drug trade of their allies in Cebu City.

“You know Cebu City is not a drug-free city so they know if I will assume their allies here will be restless because they know won’t be able to get me on their side,” she said in Tagalog.

Garma said that the drug lords have local contacts in the city.

“I cannot tell you the name of the local contact but they’re on the watchlist and the target list,” she said.

When asked if the local contacts have been arrested, Garma said that some are already in prison except for one.

“Naa pay isa (There’s one),” she said.

When told about the death threat Garma received, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said that she should increase her security.

“I don’t know her background. Let her increase her security,” he said.

As for his personal security, Osmena said he is willing to go without one.

“I don’t care. I can remove my security. I make a challenge to remove my security,” he said, adding that the security escorts of Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino should also be removed.

Osmeña said Dino has more escorts than the mayor and it is better to deploy those security to serve the people of Cebu. (with JERRA MAE LIBREA, USJ-R INTERN)